John Henry
Julius Lester and Jerry Pinkney teamed up to recreate the African American folk ballad of John Henry. The two did an outstanding job of bringing the tale of a "steel-driving man" to life. The story begins with John Henry's birth and all the presence of the animals to see this miraculous event. The story moves along quickly to tell of other wonderful works of wonder Henry completes including an addition to his parent's house, a race with the meanest man in town, and the removal of a large boulder. John Henry's greatest win was his battle against the steam drill to cut through a huge mountain. In the end, John Henry died doing this because he hammered so long and hard his big heart burst. The message at the end of this story is not about dying but rather about how well you do your living. After his death, everyone in the town met together along the sides of the railroad track to say goodbye to John Henry as he was taken to Washington, D.C.
Both the text and illustrations are so well crafted and they make this book a must read and a wonderful addition to any folklore collection in a school's library.
Other books either written or illustrated by Julius Lester or Jerry Pinkney include:
Black Cowboy, Wild Horses
Sam and the Tigers
Little Match Girl
What a Truly Cool World
The Ugly Duckling
No comments:
Post a Comment